Small Grants for Environment Projects in Savaii

May 3, 2017

Participants of Operational Phase 6 GEF-SGP workshop in Savaii on the 3rd of May 2017. Photo credit: UNDP/2017

Around fifty participants from Savaii representing community-based women’s committees, men’s committees, village councils, youth, civil society and non-governmental organisations gathered on Wednesday, 3 May at the Savaiian Hotel to attended the Operational Phase 6 of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) workshop, and to learn more about existing environmental problems affecting them and to consider practical solutions to address these.

Speaking on behalf of the UNDP Resident Representative, Ms. Yvette Kerslake, UNDP Programme Manager of the Environment and Climate Change Programme welcomed participants and provided a brief outline of the Workshop. “The GEF SGP Operational Phase 6 capacity building workshop for Savaii aims to orient, inform and build the capacity of communities in advancing the concept notes to full proposals that would address environmental issues, and will also allow communities to adapt to the impacts of climate change,” said Ms Kerslake.

Participants learnt of the advantages of forming stronger partnership links with relevant government ministries so that they may receive additional assistance with completion of their project proposals, and welcomed the opportunity to further improve their capacity and skills in completing their proposals to be able to apply for funding for their respective projects.

Working towards its objective to ensure “Global environmental benefits secured through community-based initiatives and actions”, the UNDP GEF SGP has supported environmental projects in Samoa for over 12 years and has funded 162 small grants projects. The SGP aims to empower vulnerable communities to lead their own environmentally sustainable development through sustainable interventions and this workshop provided an opportunity for the most vulnerable communities in Savaii to work with UNDP GEF SGP.